War Music (Vampire Rodents album)

War Music is the debut studio album of Vampire Rodents, released in 1990 by V.R. Productions. It introduced the sound of the band, and several of the techniques they would use in their later works, such as sound clips and songs in different languages. Daniel has described War Music as being "a little primitive, but very funny".[1]

War Music
Studio album by
Vampire Rodents
ReleasedAugust 20, 1990 (1990-08-20)
Recorded1989 (1989) – January 1990 (1990-01)
GenreIndustrial, experimental rock
Length56:57
LabelV.R.
Dossier (re-issue)
ProducerVampire Rodents
Vampire Rodents chronology
War Music
(1990)		 Premonition
(1992)

Music and lyrics

A simpler musical foundation consisting of drums, bass guitar and electric guitar was utilized to trick listeners into believing the duo were an industrial rock group.[2] Similar to other industrial music of the time, sampled movie and television dialogue was peppered throughout the compositions. This prompted some to draw comparisons between the Rodents and other prominent musical acts such as Skinny Puppy and Einstürzende Neubauten. The compositions also borrow snippets of sound from previously recorded and released music, such as "Momentous" from older funk tunes.[3]

The album probably gained the most recognition for Vahnke's lyrics, which utilize dark humor to explore environmentalist and anti-human themes. Although primary an English language album, lyrics for two tracks were translated into another language: "Dumme Weisse Menschen", whose lyrics were written in German, and "PLA Man", which was written in Chinese. "Dumme Weisse Menschen", which opened the album, even caused some listeners to assume that the band comprised German musicians. The song, which translates to "stupid white people", was described by Victor Wulf as a critiquing of Western culture and an archetype of the band's philosophy.[4] Vahnke described the Chinese language song "Pla Man" as a polemic against the Beijing government and for its involvement in the Tiananmen Square Massacre of 1989.[5] The track Abortion Clinic Deli was inspired by the famous satirical piece, A Modest Proposal.

Release and reception

The record was completed in January 1990 and released on cassette for a limited run of 918 pressings under the label V.R. Productions. The album was then adopted by Dossier in 1991 and re-released on CD for a wider distribution. When War Music was re-issued, the song "Meat" was moved from being the album's opener to its closer. The album is currently out of print on both labels.[6] There were plans to re-issue the album with Premonition and an expanded track listing, including the unreleased songs "Lizardman", "Blind Acceleration", "Smartass", "Harelip", and "Annexation II".

Robert Baird of the Phoenix New Times was somewhat enthusiastic about the album, saying that although "the band's darkly humorous, apocalyptic visions are set to a cyber-aggressive post-industrialist beat" that there is "a point to all the sickness and gore."[3]

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Daniel Vahnke, except "Abortion Clinic Deli" by Victor Wulf; all music is composed by Daniel Vahnke, except "Momentous", "Press of Flesh", "Success" and "Abortion Clinic Deli" by Victor Wulf

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."Meat"3:42
2."Dumme Weisse Menschen"4:08
3."Fragrance of Christ"2:20
4."Extinction"4:22
5."The Ninth Floor"1:53
6."Mummified"3:47
7."The Tide Returns"3:10
8."PLA Man"3:52
Side two
No.TitleLength
1."Autocannibalism"4:40
2."Crack Babies"2:18
3."Momentous"3:19
4."Press of Flesh"3:14
5."Holiday"4:30
6."Friktion"1:01
7."Success"4:00
8."Abortion Clinic Deli"2:15
9."Sexrite"4:26
CD track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Dumme Weisse Menschen"4:08
2."Fragrance of Christ"2:20
3."Extinction"4:22
4."The Ninth Floor"1:53
5."Mummified"3:47
6."The Tide Returns"3:10
7."Pla Man"3:52
8."Autocannibalism"4:40
9."Crack Babies"2:18
10."Momentous"3:19
11."Press of Flesh"3:14
12."Holiday"4:30
13."Friktion"1:01
14."Success"4:00
15."Abortion Clinic Deli"2:15
16."Sexrite"4:26
17."Meat"3:42
2019 Digital Re-Issue
No.TitleLength
1."Meat"3:42
2."Extinction"4:22
3."Fragrance of Christ"2:20
4."The Ninth Floor"1:53
5."Mummified"3:47
6."The Tide Returns"3:10
7."Autocannibalism"4:40
8."Pla Man"3:52
9."Crack Babies"2:18
10."Momentous"3:19
11."Press of Flesh"3:14
12."Holiday"4:30
13."Friktion"1:01
14."Dumme Weisse Menschen"4:08
15."Success"4:00
16."Sexrite"4:26
17."Abortion Clinic Deli"2:15

Personnel

Adapted from the War Music liner notes.[7]

Vampire Rodents

Additional musicians

Release history
Region Date Label Format Catalog
United States 1990 V.R. Productions CS VR1
Germany 1991 Dossier CD DCD 9025

References
  1. Villa, Stefano. Vampire Rodents: Science Collage. Vampire Rodents biography (translated). Retrieved on July 22, 2010.
  2. "Vampire Rodents Interview". Dysmetria Magazine. September 13, 1992. Archived from the original on July 9, 2000. Retrieved September 15, 2015.
  3. Baird, Robert (May 1, 1991). "Arizona Hot Tracks: Vampire Rodents War Music". Phoenix New Times. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
  4. Chase (1991). "Interview with Victor Wulf and Anton Rathausen of the Vampire Rodents". Technology Works (12). Archived from the original on May 18, 2000. Retrieved September 15, 2015.
  5. Laliberte, Mark (October 17, 1991). "Technical Chaos Interview by M. Laliberte". Technical Chaos. Archived from the original on February 3, 1999. Retrieved September 15, 2015.
  6. "Vampire Rodents/Ether Bunny Interview 2007". themindofmicrowaved.blogspot.com. June 2007. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
  7. War Music (booklet). Vampire Rodents. Phoenix, Arizona: V.R. Productions. 1990.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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